New Delhi (NVI):Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi today laid the foundation stone for Manipur Water Supply project via video conferencing and said he is giving a “Raksha Bandhan gift” to women of Manipur.
“This project will give clean drinking water to Greater Imphal and 1,700 village in Manipur. It will provide a lifeline to these people,” PM Mod said. He added that it will help women in as many as one lakh families in the state.
The project is being undertaken under the centre’s Jal Jeevan Mission, under which funds were provided to the state to ensure freshwater household tap connections (FHTCs) in at least 1,185 habitations with 1,42,749 households.
The project is an important component of the efforts of the state government to achieve the goal of ‘Har Ghar Jal’ by 2024. The project outlay is about Rs 3,054 crore with a loan component funded by the New Development Bank.
Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region Jitendra Singh, Manipur Governor Najma Akbar Ali Heptulla, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh also attended the event.
The PM said that the project has been designed with the help of local panchayats and people living here, which he said is a “fine example of decentralisation”.
“The Manipur Water Supply project will also generate employment for thousands of people,” PM Modi said. He also highlighted the fact that work to lay the pipelines was continuing even during the Covid-19 lockdown.
“The Northeast is battling twin challenges – Covid-19 and flood. Many people have to leave their homes due to the flood. I assure you that everyone is with you in this difficult time,” said the Prime Minister.
